The Complete Guide to Mariah Carey's 'Me. I Am Mariah...The Elusive Chanteuse' Album

The Latest (5/20): It's here! Listen to the entire standard edition of Me. I Am Mariah ...The Elusive Chanteusestreaming right now on iTunes Radio, a week before the album's official release! Enjoy Lambs!

The Buildup

Mariah Carey's 2009 album Memoirs of an Angel boasted a Top 10 hit "Obsessed" and sold an impressive (but rather low for Mariah) 546,000 copies total. Five years later, she's on the verge of releasing a new album with the usual hype and excitement that follows a Mariah record, and the stakes are higher than ever.

With six years since the 2008 smash "Touch My Body" hit No. 1, this year will mark the longest amount of time Mimi has ever gone without a chart-topping single—the previous stretch was five years between 2000's "Thank God I Found You" and "We Belong Together" in 2005.

In late summer 2012, Mariah started giving the first hints about the record. "I'm not trying to follow any particular trend," she told Billboard. "I want it to be well received. I want to stay true to myself and the music that I love and make the fans happy. I can't even express this properly but I feel like this is gonna be my favorite album." Lambs, are you ready?

-Fabolous (CONFIRMED): While posting on Instagram about a night in the studio, Mariah posted a pic that she was "doing a different record now" and tagged the Brooklyn rapper. The collaborated on the track "Last Night a DJ Saved My Life" off Mimi's Glitter soundtrack. The MC was confirmed when Mariah posted the tracklist on iTunes.

-R. Kelly (CONFIRMED): While Mariah teased a studio snap with Kellz saying "working on a new song!" we're wondering if it's for the Chicago crooner's Trapped in the Closet series. He features on deluxe version bonus track, "Betcha Gon' Know."

Our first taste of new Mariah music came in August 2012 via the hip hop/R&B collabo "Triumphant (Get Em)" featuring Rick Ross and Meek Mill. Curiously, the rappers handled the verses while Mimi only sang on the chorus and bridge. The result was lackluster and failed to chart on the Hot 100, demoting the track to a "buzz single" that will presumably not make the final album.

Nine months later, "#Beautiful" featuring Miguel was billed as the album's lead single. The silky-smooth R&B jam became a summer anthem and peaked at No. 15 on the Hot 100. It was the diva's biggest chart hit since 2009.

The single was originally set to be the title track off the record. But Mariah told MTV that when the album cover leaked and she started adding new songs, she decided the title was no longer representative of the album.

As a Valentine's Day present, Mariah announced she'd release her new love ballad "You're Mine (Eternal)." The track came as a solo version with the following steamy music video...

...along with a remix version featuring Trey Songz that came with its own sensual visual. The track garnered acclaim for its similarities to Mariah's megahit "We Belong Together" and peaked at No. 88 on the Hot 100 so far.

Mariah also told MTV the new album "is all for the nostalgia" of her past classic albums and doesn't dabble in today's EDM-obsessed culture. "While I was writing, there were conversations where I asked, 'So, I have to jump on the techno bandwagon? Because I'd rather stay off the bandwagon if that's the case.' Not everybody has to be on that type of beat to get on the radio."

Photo Credit: Mariah Carey/Twitter

Setbacks

Mariah's faced a few hurdles with this project. In early July, the diva was rushed to a hospital after dislocating her shoulder while shooting a video for the remix of "#Beautiful."

The album's original release date of July 23, 2013 was also pushed back indefinitely after Mariah "got so immersed in the creative process." She told fans on Twitter, "I just don't feel I would be doing it justice to release it on 7/23. I'd rather not exclude meaningful songs. I want to give you this album as it's meant to be heard."

Producer Bryan-Michael Cox cited Mariah's difficult pregnancy and Idol as other roadblocks, but he likens the record's evolution to cooking "a honey-baked ham." He told Billboard, "Over the past couple of years we've added songs, scratched songs, slow-baking this record like a honey-baked ham—when you take a bite of that ham, people will be extremely and pleasantly surprised."

This February, Mariah announced the album will drop May 6 via a two-minute video reminding the world of everything the singer has accomplished—including a scan of every Billboard Hot 100 chart for each of her 18 No. 1 songs.

Despite such a grandiose release date announcement, evidence hints the May 6 date may be changing yet again. Mariah's label, Island Def Jam, does not list the LP in its "Coming Soon" section—though Afrojack's Forget the World, also out on May 6, is listed. As well, music industry site HitsDailyDouble.com doesn't include the record in its "Upcoming Releases" section either. Though, it should be noted that every title on the sites has a confirmed title while Mariah's does not. Her official YouTube page still has the video boasting the May 6 release date.

Surprise! Or Not?

Just when we thought the album had hit another road block, Mariah announced a Beyonce-esque surprise album in a new Billboard cover story. Mimi will reveal the title, tracklisting, artwork and music all together through digital partners. And not to worry hardcore Lambs, a physical release is expected the following week.

"I have to be the one that announces this, especially the title," she says in the interview.

Mariah's label countered the story and said that Mariah's new album "will be preceded by a traditional strategy leading up to a 'late May' simultaneous digital/physical street date"—aka the way all albums are released today.

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Photo of the day

The holiday season is upon us and no one else is more excited than the Queen of Christmas herself, Mariah Carey. After kicking of her annual "All I Want For Christmas Is You" concert series at the Beacon Theatre the night before, Mimi continued spreading her holiday cheer and lit up the Empire State Building in celebration of their new holiday light show.